Cast Meet
by blottyparchment
Summary: As indifferent as can be when it comes to Angelic Layer, a new curriculum that includes the sport gives the Mihara the chance to meet the layer enthusiasts in their natural environment. A story about paving relationships with new people. Chapter 4 updated
1. Father's Brainchild and the Surroundings

**D**isclaimer: I am, in no way, the owner of Angelic Layer. I only own Saya, Hinako, Chihiro, Rikan, Yuri and some other characters who'll come out in the ficcie. 

big note ~ I WILL TRY MY BEST TO MAKE MY CHARACTERS DIFFERENT FROM THEIR PARENTS. ALTHOUGH IT MAY SEEM LIKE THAT. IT WILL TURN OUT DIFFERENT. 

Information Nook~

* Mihara Saya (12 and 1/2 years old)

Although her relations are mostly AL buffs, these people cannot seem to influence her at all. Saya does not hate the layer, in particular. She just cannot be pulled into its fast-paced world. However, she does know a lot about it. The girl just doesn't show it. Saya has a great resemblance to her mother but thinks rather a lot like her father, Oujirou. She can be caring sometimes and indifferent other times. She likes to muse a lot and is a little stiff in communicating with her peers, acting formal towards them. The girl rarely loosens up in the face of others. One of the exceptions is her grandaunt Shouko's adopted daughter, Rikan, who has the nick "Ran".

Later on in the story, Saya takes an interest on an unforeseen thing. Also, in this whirlpool of meetings, the girl meets people who will affect her as they were supposed to when she was younger.

* prodigal school - these are deuses with exceptional abilities to hone the skills of their angels to the max, surpassing the limits of an angel.   
* SM12-4 chip - first beta chip created by AL developers. Failure.  
* SM12-4X chip - new microchip created after the failure of the first one. It is buried in the body of a person.

* Project SS - there was an earlier name for this project 2 years ago. It was called Project Shizumi which became a failure. The new revision, Project SS, was successful compared to Project Shizumi.  


** Prologue**

_**10 years ago...**_

_"Why did you allow him to do it on her?! Was he playing the older-brother-should-be-followed thing again?" _

_"Of course not. He wasn't even suggesting the procedure be done on our daughter."_

_"Oh really? Then, whose bright idea was it?"_

_"It was mine. I wanted the microchip on her."_

_"You should have consulted me first! I could've disagreed, you know."_

_"Misaki, look. There's no harm in embedding..."_

_"..No harm?! What do you mean by that? After what happened a year ago?!"_

Kobayashi Tamayo heard the loud cries as she was nearing the door. Before her, Icchan propped himself on the very door that the shouts were erupting from. He was staring ahead of him, melancholic in his countenance. Tamayo coughed to let her presence known.

"Oh hi," Ichirou said weakly. He had bags under his eyes, indicating lack of sleep. Tamayo guessed that he could have been having restless nights these days. She also noticed that the layer expert was much much thinner than she remembered.

Tamayo chose her words carefully lest the man might turn edgy. "Hi. Uh, how long has that been going on?" Tamayo pointed an index finger at the closed door Ichirou was leaning on.

"Not too long actually," Ichirou replied. Then, he added, "...only an hour ago."

"That bad huh?"

"You could say that again."

The shouts were getting louder now. Ichirou went away from the door. He sighed and rubbed his neck, which was getting quite stiff. "Long time no see, Kizuki-san, or is it Kobayashi now?"

"I'm Kobayashi Tamayo now," confirmed Tamayo. 

"Finally caught up to that bickering couple in there," Ichirou said, briefly glancing at the door. The argument was still ongoing. "I bet you had a great honeymoon."

Tamayo turned a bright shade of crimson. She still blushed whenever topics like that were brought up. Shaking off the thought, she decided to stir the conversation towards another topic. "Icchan, how are you? You look strained. Does the fight inside that room have anything to do with it?"

"..."

"Aiiyayay...Here I was, coming up to the AL Company to greet my dear best friend but it so turns out this thing is happening right now. I was hoping she'd be here, smiling like usual. But all I can imagine at this time is a Misaki spitting out flames."

Ichirou nodded. Right that moment, the door burst open. A woman in her twenties with wayward strands of copper hair all over her face came out. Her face was scrunched up in a way that showed she had been holding back tears. She was hugging her small frame, blue eyes filled with forlornness. 

"Misaki...," Tamayo called.

The tears that where being held back gushed down Misaki's cheeks. Misaki fled.

**oCast Meeto**

**Chapter 1**

**Father's Brainchild and the Surroundings**

_(present period)_

**F**or many years, the game known as the Angelic Layer has evolved from the use of simple dolls to complex creations. Angels, originally the brainchildren of Mihara Ichirou, perceived that this dream would change lives aplenty. He manipulated the layer to a certain level that the so-called "angelic fever" spread even to countries abroad.

Angelic Layer, in its entirety, is a battle between two people, known as Deuses. It is in the Deus's will that the angel he/she controls renders mobility. The height, size or appearance of the angel does not matter at all. The outcome of the battle does not depend whether the angel is weak or mighty, speedy or slow, heavyweight or lightweight. The Deus's determination and desire to win is more important.

Angels are not all the same in build or in what they look like. People see them differently as well. To the Deus, his/her angel may be a toy, a friend, a companion, a lover, or a reminder. It may have taught the Deus something valuable in life or it may just simply be a form of entertainment.

_ Yeah, right._

Twelve year old Mihara Saya couldn't care less at what was written in the pages they were supposed to read in class. They didn't as much as tell the students to read about Angelic Layer in class a few years back. The students weren't even required to _know_ what the word meant. Saya only found out about the ridiculous setup last week. The Layer was to be introduced to the school's curriculums. To develop young minds, they said.

A lot of students, particularly the girls, loved the new program. They liked the fact that since Angelic Layer was so hip, it should be part of schooling. The construction of a small tournament dome was in the process already. Almost everyday, students would pass the towering circular building erected near the school to take a peep at the future battle area for student Deuses. 

So what was wrong with the picture?

Saya wasn't jolly with the idea. To begin with, she was never ever interested the slightest bit with the popular tournament. What was so addictive about it, Saya couldn't find the reason. She hated to admit it, but her relatives all seemed to be "layer buffs". Her uncle, Mihara Ichirou and her father, Mihara Oujirou, were connected with Angelic Layer big time. Her grandmother, Shu-something had been a champion in Angelic Layer three times in a row. About her mother...Saya didn't know much about her. But she understood that she had also played in the layer. 

_My mother, according to dad, has gone someplace far. He said that she wouldn't be back until her job was done. Is he really telling the truth?_

The passion just wasn't in her blood. Somebody might have ejected it out of her system when she was born. Well, she did try to make herself like it. She sometimes went with her dad to the Angelic Layer Company. She watched the manufacturing of the dolls, how they molded the form yet left the design and type of angel not tampered. It failed. It didn't arise any feeling. 

All of this Saya pondered as she left "The Layer in Truth: A Close View on Angels" unopened. Her eyes were directed at the cover of the book though her mind was wandering far off.

The girl wasn't aware of her seatmate talking to her. She only realized it when her mind came back to reality. "Saya, Inori-sensei has been calling on you and you aren't even looking at her!" hissed July, her seatmate. 

"Wha-?!" Saya glanced at the teacher in front. Inori-sensei _was _waiting for her to pay attention. Saya could already see how impatient the teacher was getting. She bolted up and bowed her head clumsily, mumbling an indistinct apology.

Inori-sensei loomed over her. "Next time, Mihara-san, you ought to show more respect to your elders. I understand how the subject of the angels do not appeal to you. But you _will_ stand up when I tell you to read from the book."

Saya buried her head as low as she could. 

"You may sit down," the teacher said.

Obviously, Saya had gone against an Angelic Layer enthusiast who wanted everyone else to be enthusiastic about it. She couldn't stand putting up with teachers like Inori Sakura. They were somber women wearing their hair in tight buns and piercing through your soul with such close-set eyes.

Inori-sensei continued her discussion. "...the SM12-4X chip, formerly known as SM12-4 was developed 10 years ago. As you can see, the angels that the SM12-4X chip can control have abilities beyond the common type of angels....."

Luckily, dismissal time came as usual. 

Saya piled her books and carried them in her arms. She waited for her classmates to leave first. She was always the last to go out of the room. 

The corridors were rumbustious with the chatter of students. Some were giddy and frolicking around. Others were laughing so profusely. Saya heard a few clamoring on about a certain person whose name the girl was not able to catch. It seemed to her that these students were getting excited because of an event in school. Saya couldn't figure out what.

She made her way to the locker area which was also crowded with noisy girls and boys. Saya did her best not to bump into any of them. The girl stopped short in front of her locker. She turned the combination lock and click! Tugging at the handle with one hand, she balanced the books in the other arm. As she placed her books inside, she eavesdropped on a group of gossipers near her locker. From the corners of her eyes, Saya recognize them as sixth-graders.

"Hey, hey. Did you hear?" Saya caught the words of one of the girls, a layer fanatic with glasses.

"Uh-huh. So, it really is true that the dome is going to opened this afternoon huh?"

"...and one guy from Angelic Layer Company is coming here!" 

"Kobayashi Hinako-chan too!" added a pony-tailed female. 

A blonde girl among the group clapped her hands. "You mean THE eight year old Hinako-chan, known as the Élan of the layer?" she spoke rapidly.

"Of course! It's none other than the kawaii and genki Hinako-chan! She's the Deus who is going to test out the functionality of the new layer in school, " the pony-tailed girl answered.

"I can't wait to see it then."

The drove of girls slowly moved away. Saya listened to their loud voices until they were faint in the distance. She closed her locker. The twelve year old child suddenly remembered that she had a report to submit. She padded along the hall to the teacher's faculty. 

Saya knocked first, then twisted the knob and opened the faculty door ajar. She was surprised to see that the place was devoid of the entire teaching staff. There wasn't anyone sitting at his/her own desk. The girl left the faculty, thinking. 

The mass of students was thinning out, she observed. Apparently, they were heading outside. Where? 

_Probably gone to that new extension wing, the Angelic Layer Dome, _Saya thought. She guessed it so because it was still too early for teachers and students to leave right away.

Saya halted. Her head turned toward the windows to gaze at the new annex. From the windows, she saw the circular structure that was the dome. A huge cheer went up from it. 

_I was right_, confirmed the girl. Saya made up her mind to go to the dome.

*****

A sandy-haired child of ten years beamed proudly at her handiwork. She was delighted that she was able to impress the audience with Mimosa's display of skills, the angel she cherished ever since she started playing Angelic Layer 5 years ago.

"What you've just witnessed was the Élan of the layer, Kobayashi Hinako, and her angel, Mimosa! That was surely a sugoi demonstration by our genki eight year old on the new layer," the announcer blared over the speakers. Just like the previous times, the announcer was still perched atop his post. 

Hinako, the mentioned genki ten year old, got off the Deus' high seat. She waved at the crowd with vigor. Her lavender eyes twinkled brightly. Several fangirls squealed at this. Hinako gestured towards her angel. Mimosa, standing on the edge of the disc known as the layer, gave a fanged smile, winked, and did a double flip in the air, landing square on the shoulder of her Deus. More squeals came.

Hinako waved one last time before exiting, as the announcer continued commentating.

"Enjoying yourself, Hina-chan?" a voice said from behind the eight year old Deus.

Hinako turned on her heel. She grinned widely at the speaker. "Icchan-san, I really did!" she told the man.

Mihara Ichirou smiled back. He took his hands out of its place in the pockets of his white lab coat and pushed his eyeglasses up his nose. "Well, since the Élan is satisfied, I guess the new layer's working fine." Ichirou started walking at a leisurely pace, which wasn't at all leisurely for the young deus. "Say, aren't you tired Hina-chan, after that demonstration?"

Hinako stared wide-eyed at him. She moved her head back and forth as an answer of "no". Then, the little girl stopped in her tracks. She pursed her lips and stomped her left foot indignantly. "Icchan-san! Don't walk super fast!"

Ichirou spun around. His forehead wrinkled in sympathy. "Gomen, Hina-chan," he apologized, running a hand through his unruly black hair.

Hinako smiled. "This is the first school to have its own layer, right?" asked the young Deus, catching up to the older person. 

"Yep. We're planning to build other centers nationwide."

Hinako liked the thought of having Angelic Layer everywhere. She really loved it. She was happy she had an angel like Mimosa who was just as energetic as the little girl.

"Arigatou, Icchan-san." Hinako looked up at the father of Angelic Layer. "Without the layer, I wouldn't have been able to meet Mimosa." Hinako glanced at the doll sitting on her right shoulder. It acknowledged her with a warm smile.

Ichirou patted Hinako's dark head. "You're welcome."

From the other end, a woman who looked distinctly like Hinako was waving at the child. "Hina-chan!" she called out.

Hinako perked up at the sound of her mother's voice. "Coming, okasan!" she cried back. Hinako said goodbye to Ichirou and sprinted to her mother's side.

Ichirou suddenly felt tired. Nowadays, he always did after events such as that. It was time to wrap up everything for today. The trial was successful after all. He turned right round a corner and paused in front of a steel door. The layer expert punched in a code number on the keypad at the side. Ichirou gained access. He entered the video room.

"Oogata, let's go. The new layer's doing well. The first battles should be starting around next week," Ichirou droned on to his assistant the minute he stepped inside. He didn't even pause to direct his eyes at Oogata.

Masaharu Oogata had a bright look on his sweating face. "Ah, Chief Mihara! I'm so glad to hear that. I feel totally wiped out now. Imagine doing all that repair in the main AL facility and you suddenly going ballistic because you forgot all about the test run on the recently built layer in this school. I had to drive you hear in like what, 10 minutes. You almost didn't make it!"

"Yeah yeah." Ichirou sighed, plopping down on one of the chairs. He shut his eyes tight.

"Chief, I'm sorry I didn't ask for your permission. But I let her in," Oogata uttered.

Ichirou remained in the same position. "Who?"

"Your niece."

The man blinked his eyes open and straightened up to see the sight of Mihara Saya.

"Saya-chan, I didn't notice you," Ichirou said, "I almost didn't recall that you studied here. Of course, since you were only a building away from the dome, you would certainly go to this place."

Saya came nearer to her uncle. 

"So, what brings you here? Based on my experiences, I know that my dear niece doesn't have a liking for the layer. Are we starting to change light?"

"I was only checking things out, Uncle Iichirou," replied the copper-haired twelve year old. A sweatdrop was beginning to form from the back of her head. She anticipated what was coming next.

Ichirou's eyes gleamed in a weird way. A funny smile registered on his elongated face. "Saya-chaaan. I think you're starting to take interest in the game, aren't you? And didn't I tell you to call me Icchan instead of Uncle? You're making me old."

"But you _are_ around 40 and that's considered old. Calling you Icchan _Uncle_ Ichirou sounds so wrong. It's almost like some name a perverted guy would want to concoct. Besides, you're my dad's brother. That makes you my uncle, right?"

The 47 year old man's jaws hung open. He couldn't believe the words coming out of the mouth of a fifth-grader. They hit a spot. Not only that, it showed how similar Saya was to his younger brother. _She got the sarcasm from him, the looks from her. But what about the rest of her personality? _

Saya hadn't started Angelic Layer at all. It was introduced to the girl when she was a little over 4 years. The reaction of the child to the game, at that time, was far from his expectations.

"Uncle, your cellular phone," Saya remarked. She wasn't sure about what she said to make her uncle go into oblivion. He had been talking to himself and kept on rubbing his chin unconsciously for a while. The man didn't even realize that his phone was ringing.

Ichirou shook his head. He smiled uneasily at Saya, then snatched the cellular phone from the pocket of his trousers. "Hello?" he half-shouted in a brisk manner.

"Oh, it's you," the layer expert said with a hint of disappointment. "Yeah, I'm going back now. The trial was a success."

Saya pretended to leaf over an angel catalog from a nearby table, all the while listening to her uncle talking on his cellular phone.

"Uh-huh. She's here. What?!... You're outside?! Why didn't you tell me earlier?!!! You love spiting me so much, don't you?"

The girl side-glanced at the lab coat-clad man. She caught the expression on his face. It was one that the girl couldn't read.

"Alright. I'll tell her to go and meet you." 

After a few more words exchanged, Ichirou clicked off the phone. He let out a deep sigh. Saya dropped the catalog. She stared inquiringly at him.

"Your dad's waiting outside," Ichirou simply stated. "That baka! He didn't inform me at all!!"

Ichirou's niece laughed outright at the sudden outburst.

The father of angelic layer scrunched his face at the offending action. "I'm telling you, he hasn't changed after all these years."

Saya smiled. "So that Uncle Iichan will stay Uncle Iichan." 

Somehow it didn't matter, Iichirou realized. 

*****

The child tugged lightly at the skirt of her mother. Hinako did. "Look, kaasan, it's Ou-san!" Hinako pointed at a man leaning on a car, waving.

Hinako's mother looked at the man. "You're right, Hina-chan."

"Let's go to him, okaasan!" The sandy-haired girl pulled on her mother's hand as they approached the person.

"Ou-san!"

"Hello, Hinako-chan," greeted the man calmly within hearing distance. He was still leaning on the car, arms crossed. He gazed from Hinako to the girl's mother. "Tamayo-san, I just read the results today. Your budding daughter performed well in the qualifying tournament for this year."

The parent of the young deus smiled. "Is that so, Oujirou-kun? Hear that, Ms. Élan?"

Hinako nodded. "Hai, kaasan. That true, Ou-san?" Hinako, full of innocence in her lavender eyes, stared at Mihara Ouirou.

Oujirou stepped forth towards the child. His movement was very smooth with grace even as he placed his hand on the girl's head, affectionately ruffling her sandy-hair. "Would I lie to Hinako-chan? Of course it's true. In fact, you're the top in your division."

Hinako jumped happily upon hearing the news. "Kaasan, kaasan, I'm on top!"

"I'm proud of you my dear. Now why don't you go over there and buy something?" Tamayo handed the child a few coins from her purse.

The child accepted the money. She hopped merrily towards the snack bar. All of a sudden, the jovial mood in the air was slowly being sapped away. The serious and composed facade that Oujirou always had was up again. He never showed his feelings, neither did he let anyone reach out into his scrupulous mind. He had been like that to one such person. But that person was somehow able to crack open his outer shell. Dark-haired and sapphire-eyed, he was. He had a genial air about him. These qualities made him known to the girls. He was their "prince", the name he adapted in the layer. Oujirou, in turn, had his own one and only princess. 

"Ne, prince of the layer, has hime-chan made contact yet?" Tamayo asked. 

"That's getting old already. I'm not a deus anymore, remember?" Oujirou said.

"I know. So, are the two of you having any communication at all?" This time, Tamayo stared squarely at the ex-deus. Oujirou, even with his poker face, wasn't able to meet her eyes. He knew where the conversation would lead to. Everytime _she _was being talked about, he lost his composition. Everytime her _name_ was mentioned, he would stiffen up, not knowing how to react and what to say. And the words following her name were the worst he couldn't handle.

"Have _Misaki _and Saya met already?" Tamayo pursued.

A deafening silence ensued.

Tamayo slapped her forehead and shook her head in disbelief. "I guess not."

More silence.

"I see that there's no point in doing this because you always enter a mute state whenever I ask about these things," the woman said. "Well, I'll be checking on Hina-chan. Will she see you next week?"

Oujirou had gone back to his poker face after the subject was given up like usual. "Of course. You two take care."

Tamayo sighed. "See, that's the problem with you. You're absolutely deadpan again," she remarked. Tamayo walked to the same direction her daughter headed to.

The prince of the layer smiled a poker smile as soon as Tamayo was gone. "I have to or else this relationship will fall even more apart," he told himself. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a copper head coming to him. Saya. He waved a hand at her. _It's funny how I keep seeing her in Saya. _

"I wasn't expecting you to be interested in the new dome," Oujirou said.

"I'm a cat who gets the best out of curiosity," Saya replied.

It was a secret language for them to speak that way. Their exchange was usually plain and short. The two always knew the next action without communicating it. 

Oujirou clambered into the car and so did Saya. Then, as soon as they were settled, Ouirou turned the key and started up the engine.

This time, it was understood that they needed quiet time between father and daughter. No noise, including the radio, was heard as Oujirou drove the car.

The car zipped by trees, stores, and people walking the streets. It only slowed down when traffic accumulated. Seconds and minutes passed. Oujirou just looked straight ahead, seemingly contemplating on whoever knew what. While Saya, obviously without much of a choice, turned to sightseeing.

"Angelique," Saya murmured. She was staring at a shop's sign to her left, at Oujirou's side. 

Oujirou stared too. He mentally read the skillful calligraphy scrawled on a signboard hanging from a horizontal pole protruding in front of shop. Catchy was the word for it.

The door of the shop opened. A woman with hair color similar to Saya came out. She was holding one end of a poster in her right hand and a roll of masking tape with the other.

Oujirou's eyes widened upon seeing the woman. He gripped the wheel tightly. This, Saya noticed.

Saya assumed the woman owned the store. She watched her put up the poster on the thick see-through glass, taping down four corners of it. Saya tilted her head to see what was on the poster. As if the shop owner read her mind, the copper-haired woman stepped aside. And as if she also knew she was being watched, she snapped her attention to the two people studying her. That was the twelve year old and her father. With crystal-clear cerulean eyes, the woman glanced briefly at them before returning into the shop.

The vehicles started moving forward. Traffic was back on the run. Soon, the Angelique was left far behind them.

"That lady looked like me," Saya said to her father.

Oujirou conformed with the slightest jerk of his head. A vague and stiff yes. Saya could have sworn his father looked a tad uneasy. "How was school?" Oujirou asked when Saya dropped the subject, not saying anything anymore.

"The same. Inori-sensei's still not as pious as her name tells. She's a heretic, I say."

Oujirou laughed, amused. "Young lady, you must watch that tongue of yours. Better tone down your language or you might make enemies of people."

Saya frowned disapprovingly. "It is true, you know."

A few moments of silence.

"Dad," said Saya, "who was that woman you were talking to earlier, just before I approached you?"

"Do you mean Tamayo-san? She's a friend. She came with her daughter, Hinako. Hinako led the demonstration of the layer's features. Her child is a prodigal deus."

"Is this Hinako the one with the angel named Mimosa?"

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

There wasn't an answer to Oujirou's question, not until they arrived home. Saya got out of the car, saying, "I think, if by any chance I was interested in the layer and had an angel, mine would defeat it."

Saya was sure and firm of her statement, Oujirou felt.

***** 

"I'm leaving, " Oujirou told Saya as he was going out of the door just after he and Saya finished eating dinner. 

Saya, who was cleaning up, poked her head from the kitchen. "Where're you going, dad?" Saya asked, surprised. She was holding a towel and a plate. 

"AL International Tournament Opening Ceremony tonight," the father of the girl answered. "Need to be there in the observation booth."

Saya nodded. 

Oujirou was about to turn the doorknob but paused midway. He turned around. 

"Saya-chan," he started. "I'm sorry for being busy these days..."

Saya nodded again. "...you're telling me that we're gonna spend the weekend all to ourselves, I know," she finished for him.

Oujirou seemed hesitant at first. Then, a smile gradually made its way to his face. Saya smiled too. They shared something others would not understand.

"Well, got to go now."

"Be looking forward to Saturday!" 

Oujirou was gone, meaning Saya was now alone; she set to do the rest of her tasks.

Later, Saya had nothing else to do that night. She had cleaned up already and was done with her homework. The girl felt like watching TV for awhile. Flipping it on with the remote, she flopped down on the couch in front of the TV. To her dismay, there wasn't anything eye-catching on TV right now. She channel-surfed and found about ten channels broadcasting a live coverage of this year's Angelic Layer International Tournament. 

Saya stopped at one channel and turned the volume up. 

"...yes siree. This year's turning out into a big one. We've got lots of deuses coming from all parts of the globe," roared the announcer. 

Saya was familiar with him. He was the same announcer she always saw commentating on the Angelic Layer tournaments. The one with the visor and bowtie. Not to mention, bad taste in clothing as he was wearing a purple coat all the time. 

The twelve year old continued to listen to him. "We have here one rookie from Hong Kong. According to her, this is her first time competing in the AL's major leagues. The girl's standing beside me right now. Ms. Tai Fengtian, what have you got to say about what you have seen so far?" At this, the camera zoomed in on a girl around 12 whose black hair was braided. 

Ms. Fengtian spoke hyperactively, literally jumping. "It's all so exciting. The deuses and their angels look so amazing, especially the élan and her angel, Mimosa." 

"How would you feel if you had the chance to fight Ms. Kobayashi Hinako?"

The interviewee smiled radiantly. "I would be honored, of course. It has been my dream to compete against one of the prodigal schools!"

"For those of you who don't know who the prodigal schools are, they are the deuses who can control the new generation of angels built with the highly-complicated SM12-4X chip. These deuses are really something to have been able to handle the angels from Project SS," explained the man with the visor.

The announcer turned his head and the camera was trained on a petite child making her way through the crowd. "Speaking of the élan. Here she is! Hina-chan! We absolutely want your word!" The child was jostled forcefully in front of the camera. 

Saya stared at the so-called Hinako Kobayashi. She was an utterly small girl with pale-yellow tresses and lavender pools in her eyes. The child had on a dress that matched the color of her eyes. Placed on her left shoulder was her angel, Mimosa. The doll looked almost exactly like its deus except that its hair was flaming red with a tinge of brown and so were the eyes. 

"Hina-chan, we've just been talking about you. Are you expecting any challenge from the prodigal schools this year?" the visor-wearing announcer asked with much enthusiasm.

"Er, I can't tell this early. But there's someone out there who's bound to give me a tough time. That person might just be waiting somewhere," Hinako said.

"Great choice of words, Hina-chan!" piped the ever-energetic commentator. A scornful 'hmph' was heard from the background. Saya was sure it was the chinese deus, Tai Fengtian. The camera spun around and Saya had a view of the girl. She wasn't as hyper anymore, probably because she had been forgotten by the commentator already. The scowl she wore on her face showed it.

"Palooza!!" shouted the announcer off-camera a little too loud. It caused Saya to turn down the volume a few notches. "It's our very own creator of Angelic Layer! The man himself, Mihara Ichirou!!"

Saya's famous uncle appeared in view. 

"Just as I expected," Saya said to herself. She chuckled silently when she saw that Mihara Ichirou, the father of Angelic Layer, no doubt with unkempt hair, was in his dirty-white lab coat smeared with chemicals dried in time. He pushed his glasses up his nose.

"Dr. Mihara, anything humongous happening this time?" The announcer held the microphone in front of Ichirou.

"Ah, my dear commentator. I'm glad you asked. As a matter of fact, we do! This year marks the 7th year since the success of the SM12-4X chip. Although it is not yet widely distributed, people have gaped at the wonders of the SM12-4X chip. We are planning on a special event involving all the prodigal schools! Keep in touch with me, Mr. Announcer, if you want to hear more."

The announcer, at the mention of this, gave Ichirou a definite thumbs-up. "You betcha! Boy is Dr. Mihara the genius! He's da bomb!" 

Ichirou turned crimson at the praise. He was evidently pleased and started to scratch the back of his head. "Aw, not really. I was... " he was mumbling entirely.

The camera focused solely on the announcer now. "Folks, the air is full of excitement. Everyone's going wild! It's pandemonium out here. (The scene swept over the stands, showing thousands of faces.) Competition is tight and intense this time around. (A close-up of Hinako standing at the top of the stands, making a 'v' at the camera, was seen.) Who will win? This, we will see! Stay tuned, everyone!"

The words

_ -ANGELIC ANGLE NEWS NETWORK LIVE COVERAGE-_

flashed across the scene for a few seconds before it turned to commercial breaks.

Saya couldn't get it. Why were people so crazy about Angelic Layer? There was nothing great about becoming puppeteers controlling dolls to fight with other dolls. 

_Uncle Ichirou, you're like a child for inventing something as pointless as Angelic Layer, _Saya thought. She wasn't really supportive of her father and uncle's involvement with the layer. But still, she did not object every time they let her tag along for the ride. True, she was knowledgeable about angels from the rudiments to the hard-to-understand. Yet how could that knowledge prove useful? Where was it applicable to life? That, didn't take a five-year old to figure out. Well, if that five-year old had the brains enough to see the reality, he/she would think that AL was just a waste of everything. Saya did not dare say this out loud. It would hurt her uncle, she knew. So she just kept quiet as usual.

Saya watched the advertisements shown on TV one after the other. She snorted at ridiculous commercials that said things like: "Tomikase Yuri fans everywhere! Now is the time to show full support to your idol! Join the TTFN Community - True Tomikase Fans Now!! For every membership, we'll give you a free t-shirt with Yuri prints and a Yuri notebook, PLUS, a pen that squeaks 'I Love Yuri' when you twist the cap off! So, what are you Yuri fans waiting for? Join now! Remember, TTFN!" 

"Calling Minamoto Chihiro followers! The new line of Dominique holographic images is now available! We have the 'SNoWY Day' version, 'Teacher Dominique' version, 'Drinking Coke(TM) from a Coleman Dominique', and the newest hologram - 'Dominique's #Dance Grooves#'. Hurry, stocks are limited in available stores! For inquiries, call 244-44-70 or Chi-hi-ro!"

"Can't get enough of watching your favorite deus and his/her angel? Then, this is just the thing for you - ALCaps. Angelic Layer Captures guarantees you 100% that you'll be able to see any angel's single moves. Buy the latest collection of Yuri's angel's swift moves - Alexander at a Millisecond Glance: Speed Reduced 99%. The box set comes with the Silver Edition of Mimosa's Spunky Styles!"

The commercial break was over but the girl lost her interest in watching the live coverage. She switched to another channel. She chanced upon a series called "Cat's Paw".

Saya gradually lulled herself to sleep. All she could remember before going stretching out on the sofa was the image of a fuchsia-haired teen transforming into a cute fluffy pink cat. 

The next day, Saya woke up with a start, realizing she was late for class. She hastily dressed up and made for Eriol Middle School at lightning speed, almost running over a man struggling with some AV equipment as the girl reached the school gates. Saya blurted out a sorry to him. 

"Here, lemme help you mister." Saya dropped down to pick up lengths of wire. 

"Ara ara. If it isn't my grandniece," Saya heard a voice say. The girl turned her head up to see the speaker.

"Hehhh!! Aunt Shouko?! What are you doing here?" Saya glimpsed the AV man. He had on a Tokyo Net t-shirt. "I should have known by this guy's shirt that you must be here."

Asami Shouko, 44 years of age and still a broadcaster, smiled. She flipped her straw-colored mass of hair. "Something tanoshii is about to happen. Your dad invited me."

"He's here also? How come I did not know?"

"Be-cause," Shouko poked at the side of Saya's face, "he said you were dozing off from the time he arrived home to the time he left in the morning."

"It figures..."

Right at that moment, the school bell tolled. It brought Saya back to what she was supposed to be doing. "Ack! I'm going to be late!! Gomen, Aunt Shouko. Got to go. I'll see you later!"

"Sure. Do well in class, okay?"

Saya rolled her eyes. "I'd do well to irritate my teacher," she stated, grinning.

Five minutes later, she was seen sulking outside her classroom. She had the same punishment as usual. Saya was told to go out with a sharp fingernail directed at the door. The girl was more the merrier to step out of the horrible teacher's class.

_Better out here than suffocating in there. _ Saya thought, leaning on the wall. "Hmm, I wonder what's going to happen later on that Aunt Shouko considered fun."

*****

* to be continued *


	2. Regulatory Pains

I have split the first chapter into two chapters instead because I figured that Chapter 1 was too long. Chapter 2 now begins from the first time the story centers on Minamoto Chihiro. After the part wherein the regulatory match was announced, I added the part of the battle. It seemed more proper to me to finish this chapter there. Anyway, enjoy!

**REMEMBER: **This was originally part of Chapter 1 but I have decided to put it into Chapter 2. **If you have read this before, scroll down to read the continuation.**

In case you're confused~

Mihara Saya - Oujirou and Misaki's daughter - no angel

Kobayashi Hinako - Kotarou and Tamako's daughter - angel: Mimosa

Minamoto Chihiro - Kaede's son - angel: Dominique

Information Nook~

* Kobayashi Hinako (10 years old)

She has almost the same personality as her aunt, Hatoko. There is a strong reason for this. It is also not a coincidence that her name starts with letter "H". Tamayo had a Hatoko-fetish at the time she was pregnant with Hinako. Hinako is the type who always looks at the brighter side of life. She is perky and bubbly, qualities that are very contagious to folks around her. Hinako has a more naive side to her than her aunt Hatoko was when she was young.

Hinako's angel is Mimosa, an acrobatic fighter type of meta-angel. This angel is sometimes called the Berserker from Norse mythology because of its tendency to go berserk when fighting Dominique, Chihiro's meta-angel.

Odd tidbit: Hinako is a soprano in her school choir. ;) 

* Minamoto Chihiro (11 years old)

Noted for his effeminate look, Chihiro is loved dearly by his fans nationwide. Chihiro feels that his name is too girlish and that many think of him as if he's Kaede herself. 

Chihiro is one of the few males who controls a femme type of angel. The name of the meta-angel is Dominique. It does not fall under any particular type of angel. In fact, it has its own trait of being a "ghost". A moniker for the way it attacks or defends. Dominique does not touch its opponent but attacks with its long ribbons. Chihiro's meta-angel is known as the "Phantasm".

Chihiro has a BIG crush on Hinako. Many AL afficionados support Hinako and Chihiro pairings.

Odd tidbit: Dominique is a cosplay favorite, the most popular actually. Imagine that, a convention filled with freaky, silver-haired cosplayers.

* meta-angel - new type of angels; more advanced

* com-port - it's what I call the device deuses use during angel battle

* Regulatory Match - sometimes called Jankenpon Game; the Deus who loses the jankenpon must lose on purpose during the match

The story so far: 12-year old Mihara Saya is dealing with an age wherein "Angelic Layer" is embraced by all. Angelic Layer has greatly evolved into a new technology. To strongly show this, an AL dome has just been opened up in Saya's school and Saya doesn't like it. The turn of events follows the test run of the dome by a regulatory match between a girl and one of Saya's schoolmates.... 

O**Cast Meet**O

**Chapter 2**

**Regulatory Pains**

It was another letter from one of his fans, Chihiro saw. He stared at the piece of paper torn from a notebook that was just tossed over on his desk a few seconds ago. Minamoto Chihiro didn't need ESP to discern the letter's contents. Either it was "Chihiro, We Luv You all the Way!" or "Minamoto-san, I'm your No. 1 Fan! You're the best Deus Ever!". Chihiro was tired of hearing anything along that line. 

_W__hy me of all the deuses out there? _He groaned inwardly. Chihiro wasn't about to open the letter when he felt his classmates eyeing him. Chihiro avoided their looks by pretending to take an interest in his black shoes. _Uh-oh. Here it goes again. _

Just as he expected, his seatmate nudged him. Chihiro saw him pointing at a blonde girl a few seats away from him. A wave of panic washed over the boy. The pony-tailed girl smiled. "It's from me. _ Open_ it," she mouthed. 

Chihiro faked a grin. He nodded. He was becoming more aware of the others watching him. Their stares were like pinpricks of needles stinging him. 

Sweat trickled down the side of his face. The boy didn't want to open the letter. The last time he did, he caused a commotion. Although he did have special privileges, he didn't like abusing this fact and get away with his troubles because of those privileges.

Chihiro hated to be put under pressure. His mind reeled. What to do? 

"MAY I PLEASE GO OUT?!" he yelled awkwardly as his seat screeched on the floor. He balled his fists, trying hard to keep himself under control. A blush crept up his face. 

The teacher jumped. She was startled and gawped at Chihiro as if he had done a big crime. Regaining her composition and straightening up, she gave her consent. "Of course, Minamoto-san. You may," she spluttered out, still shocked a bit.

Chihiro got something out from his bag and stuffed it down his pocket, making it bulge. He kept his head down as he made his way out, very much conscious of the millions of needles pricking his back. He knew he was walking rather stiffly and that his face was burning.

The boy was too much relieved the moment he came out. It was like he just came out of a prison cell. Chihiro heaved a sigh.

*****

It was when Saya was staring at the ceiling in the hallway that a yellowish green headed boy ran across her. 

"Huh?" Saya eyed him, speculating on why the boy was sprinting at such a speed. Saya thought that he might have been running away from a bully. The anxious-looking boy turned a sharp left, towards the lavatory's direction. 

"Nature calls?"

*****

Minamoto Chihiro was eleven, two years younger than most of his classmates. So he was special, or at least that's what they kept telling him. Chihiro didn't believe it. He thought hard of reasons why he was supposed to be special.

Chihiro let the water cool off his face. _I'm just a boy who loves Angelic Layer. Why do I have to go through this? _With one hand, he felt his pockets for his handkerchief. This, he used to wipe his face dry.

Chihiro gazed at his reflection in the mirror of the boy's lavatory. Teal eyes gazed back. Chihiro was almost the spitting image of his mother, he admitted. With his olive green hair and teal eyes, many have noted that he could have passed as Minamoto Saitou Kaede if not for his gender. He strongly disagreed. Aside from that , Chihiro sounded so much like a girlish name. The boy never failed to feel insulted every time he was mistaken for a girl because of the name. 

One thing Chihiro could not get over was his shyness. He was never much into public relations, though he looked quite calm during televised AL tournaments. In reality, his heart could've jumped to his throat if not for his second's reassuring words of advise. For all the tournaments, his mother had been the second. Chihiro was thankful for this.

A sentimental smile lit on the boy's face as he thought of his mother. Minamato Kaede was the one who opened his world to the layer. 

Chihiro removed the bulging item in his pocket. The boy laid it down in front of him. 

"Dominique," Chihiro called out to his angel. "I'm sorry I had to jam you like that into my pocket." It blinked up at him with purple eyes. 

This was the only thing holding him back from finding the layer pleasant. Chihiro was a prodigal deus. That was something to flaunt. He had the SM12-4X chip implanted on his right arm. Once you had the chip on you it makes it possible for one to take hold on a meta-angel. Meta-angels were capable of thinking on their own albeit they receive the knowledge from the deus. Chihiro was awed the first time he saw a meta-angel. Its deus was talking happily to it. He discovered from his mother that the deus did not create her own angel. A meta-angel was always readied by the manufacturer. It already had an appearance. But the data inside was still yet to be filled in, through its deus. 

The meta-angels were not really perfect. There were conditions. Not everyone who wanted the chip put in them succeeded. 96% of the time, the body of the recipient would reject the microchip. Only a few, including Chihiro, actually accepted it into their bodies. Also, meta-angels were very particular as to the deus they react well with.

Something to flaunt, right? That was not the case for Chihiro. The only angels he was compatible with were....femme types. His best compatibility was with the angel he now had - Dominique. 

For some reason, Chihiro wasn't too proud to have Dominique for an angel though he used it well in the layer. Many people compared Dominique to Buranshe, his mother's angel before. They would comment on how Dominique moved gracefully just like Buranshe. 

Chihiro's angel was a female. Its name, Dominique, was given by his okaasan. So was Chihiro's own girlish name. But he was a boy...who was said to look like his mother. Well, it _was _natural for him to be like his mother. But actually look like as in appear as a girl? Maybe that was why he was popular. 

Was it so becoming for him to have a female's side? Had he been hanging around too many girls and women?

"Forget about your musings," Chihiro snapped out of his thoughts. "There's nothing I can do about Dominique or my name."

Feeling much better, Chihiro put Dominique on his shoulder and left his place in the lavatory. He walked down the corridor, having no intention to go back to his class since the bell would be ringing in a few minutes.

The speakers crackled. An announcement came up, **"Attention. To all students: The first Angelic Layer battle special in Megumare Middle School's Angelic Dome will commence this afternoon. The match is between Megumare Gakkoo's Minamoto Chihiro and our guest deus, Kobayashi Hinako. Dominique vs. Mimosa..."**

"Wha~!!??" Chihiro squawked. It was the unexpected.

*****

**"...Students who are interested in watching may proceed to the dome after regular classes. Thank you."**

Saya smiled wryly at the announcement. "So this is the fun event huh?"

The school bell rang on cue. Students filed out of the classrooms. Saya knew too well that most of them were going to witness the school's first AL battle. 

Saya waited for the rest of her classmates to evacuate the classroom. She claimed her things just when they were all gone. Through the window, she saw students in large groups making their way to the dome.

Saya was exiting the room just as she saw the same boy who was running her way a while ago. The boy glanced at her shortly.

The latter mustered up the courage to dare ask the boy. "Ano, why were you in a hurry just now? I was standing outside when you passed me by."

The boy was caught off guard by Saya's question. 

"Who were you running away from?"

The boy was even more surprised. It took him several seconds to speak. "Um, I can't explain now. I have to go to the dome."

Saya deduced that the boy was a fanatic and didn't want to miss the match. "Oh. I'm sorry I interfered. Of course. Everyone's off to see the fight. So are you."

"Uh no," said the boy, "actually, I need to go to the video room."

Saya squinted her eyes. A doll that was sitting on the boy's shoulder drew her attention. She put two and two together. "You're Minamoto Chihiro."

*****

Inside the control room...

"This is unprepared for, Oujirou," remarked Oogata a few minutes after the recent announcement was made. 

"I know. I'm merely making things thrill, Oogata-kun," replied Oujirou casually. "Now, will you please ready the layer for our two deuses?"

"But-"

"No excuses, Oogata-kun." Oujirou smiled.

Oogata took action in his task, mumbling, "it's good for publicity...boosts up fan's enthusiasm, I guess...after this...udon bowls...yummy..."

The door slid open. Asami Shouko stepped in followed by the Élan, Hinako.

"Everything alright here?" Shouko asked, looking around. 

"Shipshape!" Oogata said with a thumbs up and a wink.

Hinako went to Oujirou's side. "Ou-san, hello!"

"Hello Hinako-chan." Oujirou touched the girl's sandy tresses. He noticed Hinako's outfit. She wore a saffron blazer over an aqua top matched with a plaid saffron skirt. Hinako's long hair was gathered by a band with the AL mark. The girl carried a rucksack with angel wings.

"That's a cute outfit," Oujirou observed.

Hinako sparkled with glee. "Arigato, Ou-san."

"Chihiro-kun will have a hard time concentrating."

Hinako was bewildered but started laughing in a high-pitched voice. "I don't think so. Where's Chihiro-kun anyway? I can't wait to begin our match!" Hinako rocked back and forth on her heels, her hands clasped at her back. 

Oujirou chuckled. " Oh, he'll be here."

The door slid open again. Two people came in.

"Saya," Oujirou said when he realized who walked in. "Ah. You're with Chihiro-kun," he added upon seeing the other person.

Hinako smiled at Chihiro. Chihiro avoided her sight, slightly turning red. He shook his head vigorously and turned to Oujirou instead. "Mihara-san, I never knew you had a daughter. Let alone a daughter studying in the same school and same grade as I am."

"Really, Ou-san? This is your daughter?" Hinako chimed. 

"Well, I don't talk about her much do I?" Oujirou answered stoically. "And she doesn't see you guys much either." 

"You're not a deus?" Chihiro inquired Saya.

"I don't do Angelic Layer," Saya said in a rather strong response. She sat down on a chair.

An expression of concern reached Chihiro. "Saya, right? I apologize for provoking you," he told Saya sincerely.

Saya fixed her gaze at Chihiro. "No you didn't. Why should I feel provoked?"

Out of the blue, Hinako giggled. 

"What's so funny?!" Chihiro glared at Hinako.

"Down 10 notches! You just lost 10 heart points!" Hinako couldn't stop laughing. She doubled over, clutching her tummy.

"Hinako-san!" Chihiro protested. Then as if seeing Hinako for the first time. He averted his eyes, reddening. 

Hinako finally restrained herself. She straightened up and brushed aside obstructing bangs on her forehead. The young deus approached the sitting girl and said to her in a friendly manner, "Kobayashi Hinako. Call me Hinako. Nice to meet you! And that guy there is Minamoto Chihiro-kun."

Saya stared at the ten year old and the eleven year old then she smiled. "Saya. Mihara Saya."

Oujirou cleared his throat. Chihiro and Hinako focused on him. 

"First match. You two are doing the honors," Oujirou declared. "Regulatory, okay?"

Chihiro and Hinako nodded. They looked at each other, fingers in a familiar position to Saya. 

"Rock!..."

"...Paper!..."

"...Scissors!"

A sweatdrop formed at the back of Saya's forehead. 

"Ha! I win!" Hinako cried victoriously. 

"As always," Chihiro grumbled. "Right, Dominique?" The angel who had gone unnoticed on her perch moved its head in agreement. 

Hinako rummaged through her rucksack and pulled out a transparent box. Hinako snapped it open. Her angel, Mimosa, jumped into the arms of its deus.

Chihiro and Hinako proceeded to go out but Chihiro stopped midway. He looked over his shoulder at Oujirou. "Mihara-san, I almost forgot. Please let me know in advance when we're supposed to have layer battles," said Chihiro seriously.

Oujirou acknowledged the boy with a cursory motion of the head. Chihiro stepped out after getting his answer.

"Regulatory? Is that new?" Saya questioned her father. 

"Yes. Deuses usually fight on their own accord but once in a while, we have these regulatory matches. The two deuses play 'jankenpon' and the winner wins the battle itself. It's just something amusing to see. You can fight all you want but if you've lost in 'jankenpon', there's nothing else you can do but lose on purpose," Oujirou explained.

Saya's eyebrow twitched. "Do the audience actually know that it's regulatory?" 

"Of course. But they don't know who the loser will be. That's for them to find out. Regulatory matches have become so popular that fans even have bets."

"Let me guess. Uncle Ichirou's idea?" Saya volunteered. Oujirou did not tell her what she wanted to know. Whether his silent mode suggested the truth or not, it was up to Saya to choose what she believed. In any way, Saya only had one thing to say about her uncle: _Baka. He plays with the layer like a toy!_

_*****_

The immediate and tumultuous response of the crowd was deafening. It showed to prove that a regulatory match between two prodigal deuses was enough to stimulate excitement in the air. As Hinako, stepped up to the platform where her seat was, numerous fanpeople whooped very loudly. A few holding up 'Ms. Élan, Gambatte!!!!' banners held them up even higher to the point of covering their views. 

When it was Chihiro's turn to step up to his position, countless raving schoolgirls shouted their undying support. A portion of the watchers in the stands, comprised of Chihiro's staunch followers, formed a cheering squad repeatedly chanting, "Chihiro, Chihiro, you're the best! Y-e-s, yes, oh yes!"

There was a considerably big group of Hinako and Chihiro lovers altogether. They waved flags with doodles of chibi Hinakos and Chihiros enclosed in hearts drawn roughly on them. There was one manila paper poster containing the justificative words, 'Hina-chan and Chihiro-kun are not meant to fight each other! The match should become a draw!'

This time, the commentator made a smashing entrance by unsuspectingly dropping off from nowhere. Shrieks of surprise which the commentator mistaken for cries of rejoice were heard from the crowd. Because of this supposition, the announcer made uncanny macho poses and boasted of other stunts that he could perform. The crowd expressed their disapprobation with catcalls and boos at the commentator's antics.

"I'm just kidding, you guys!" retracted the announcer. He smiled apologetically. "OOOOOKKKAAY! I don't think there's any need to introduce our duelists for today! It's easy to tell from your cries that you know them very well, folks!"

"Today's match is regulatory. Yup, the jankenpon winner has already been decided but we don't know who he or she is going to be! Whose angel will emerge victorious? The Élan's Mimosa or refined Chihiro's refined Dominique? That, we will have to find out! All bets should have been placed by now."

All the while, as the announcer with the visor, bowtie, and tacky purple coat was jabbering, Chihiro could feel his heart pounding very loudly in his chest. It was not the first time his angel faced Hinako's. In fact, they had fought several times. Dominique lost every one of those battles. Chihiro admitted that he could win against anybody else. But when it came to Hinako's angel, he just could not concentrate well when he knew it was Hinako she was up against. Battles between meta-angels and their deuses did not follow usual procedures. The deuses would act as guides for the angels while they think on their own. The deus would be the one to prod his or her angel if it is in doubt. When the angel's moves are not concrete enough, the deus helps it overcome the opponent. In some way, the thought patterns of the deus and the meta-angel are the same. They are same in the sense that the meta-angel learns from its owner and eventually develops its own style.

Every time Chihiro was fighting Hinako, he could not direct his meta-angel very well. It was really becoming a problem. He could not explain why. 

_Even if I'm supposed to lose to her, _Chihiro thought as he took his place, _I must show Hinako-san a good fight. _The boy stole a brief glance at the girl. She was talking animatedly to her angel. Chihiro realized that the brief glance he meant had become a long one just as Hinako seemed to have noticed him, furnishing a charming smile on her round and youthful face.

Chihiro's cheeks instantly colored. He shifted his gaze away from the other child. _Why can't I look straight at her every time she smiles at me? Chihiro, this is no time to be acting like a fool. Your mother's not here right now to help you. _Chihiro fumbled for his com-port. With unsteady hands, he fixed the headset onto his head and adjusted the mouthpiece to his liking. Chihiro then felt for the push button that would activate the visor.

Hinako was also doing the same. "Chihiro-kun, take a look at that," she said to the deus on the other side through the mouthpiece, pointing towards one part of the stands. 

Chihiro turned his head. He saw that Hinako was pointing at a message scrawled on a manila paper being displayed by ardent Hinako and Chihiro fans. At first, Chihiro could not make out what the message said. He read it aloud very slowly, " Hina-chan and Chihiro-kun are not meant to fight each other......The match should become a draw.....Say what?!"

Hinako laughed outright upon seeing the bizarre reaction of the boy. 

"Hinako-san!" 

The girl tried hard to suppress herself but it was to no avail. "Gomen, Chihiro-kun...ha ha...." 

"Hinako-san, that's not fu-"

A booming voice cut through. The commentator was about to announce the beginning of the battle. "....Now to get things cracking! I think the deuses are all set. Deuses, are you ready?"

Hinako was finally able to stop laughing. "Well, good luck to both of us. You can scold me later, _gramps_!" she told Chihiro, giving him a wink and giving the announcer a thumbs-up.

"..The time limit is 5 minutes. By the end of the allotted time, the angel designed to lose should have lesser life points or none left.."

"Hinako-san!" 

"...Angels fight!"

*****

Ichirou appeared inside the video room just as the battle was starting. He was huffing and puffing when he arrived. 

"Gomen, I got late," he mumbled, taking his place beside Oujirou.

"Chief, you're right on time!" Oogata said cheerily. 

"Oniisan, that's just like you," Oujirou remarked ruminantly.

*****

"Let's do our best, Mimosa, even though it's a regulatory match!" Hinako smiled lovingly at her angel. She took a deep breath and said her usual line before any battle began, "Dream unto reality, Mimosa!" 

With a deft movement of her hand, she threw Mimosa into the ring. 

"Angel, fall-in!"

Mimosa was an acrobatic lightweight fighter. It was manufactured with flaming-red hair which Hinako kept long and a build meant for lightweights. The angel specialized in melee attacks. But being more advanced, Mimosa could do more than just pack a powerful punch with its knuckles or thrust a kick that could send its opponent flying back. The meta-angel was noted, however, for one faulty thing that always occurred every time it fought against Dominique.

Mimosa's garments were often thought to have been patterned after female protagonists in sci-fi action movies. It sported a long shiny white coat cut short around the sleeves over a large black shirt that had white crisscross designs and dark breeches. Other notable parts of the meta-angel's outfit included a trendy belt around its waist and slick knee-length boots. Mimosa had black hair cropped short and brown eyes.

Before touching the disc's surface, the meta-angel flipped in midair and landed with its hands braced upon the layer's floor, supporting its whole body.

Fans screeched in utter delight. 

Now was Chihiro's turn. 

"Come down from the heavenly gates. Fly, Dominique!"

Chihiro flung his own meta-angel into the ring as well. 

"Angel, fall-in!"

Dominique was considered a different type of meta-angel altogether. She was the "Phantasm". People never did understand the nature of it. The ways that it could attack its enemy was hard to describe. It seemed as if Dominique was just floating there, yet it was pushing back the other angel. There was something daunting about Chihiro's angel. It had a luminescent body clad in flowing layers of white, projecting tentacle-like ribbons streaming in the air. Dominique's silver locks and crimson eyes also added an effect. 

The meta-angel was ethereal, both in movements and appearance. It seemed to defy the laws of gravity as it hovered a few inches above the layer. A lambent light encumbered Dominique.

The whole crowd was stifled speechless in awe. 

"Seriously, Chihiro-kun, you've yet again overdone it," commented Hinako.

Chihiro, deciding to get serious, brushed aside the remark. "Hinako-san, you better watch over Mimosa. The fight has already begun." 

"Right." Hinako decided it was time she got serious too. Chihiro, even though his meta-angel was stipulated to lose, was not to be taken lightly. 

*****

A close-up view of the layer in one of the monitors in the video room showed that neither of the meta-angels were making any move. The tension was evident. Nobody dared to make any sound.

Oujirou shattered the silence. "Saya-chan," he said," It's your first time to see a battle between two superior angels and their respective deuses, isn't it?"

Saya nodded. " A battle between meta-angels from Project SS and their deuses with the SM12-4X chip...."she said quietly. The girl did not need to elaborate details. Everyone in the booth knew what she was talking about, but Ichirou could not help but recall things involving that. People had no time to notice the dark look he had on his face, as there were, at last, movements on the layer.

All focused intently on the one monitor that gave the viewers a very close angle of the fight.

*****

Dominique was always painstakingly cautious. It never ever made the first moves. The opposite went for Mimosa. It followed an unseen driven force. It was no surprise to see the fighter type attack first than the thinking type. Mimosa gambled letting Dominique's guard down right away by making a swift side-step and delivering an unsuccessful critical sweep.

Dominique moved back out of reach with unfailing grace. It was not a thinker for nothing. Defense was its domain and counterattacks, its weapon.

It was clear that the easy way of finishing off the fight was not meant to be. 

No dirty tricks. Dominique seemed to be challenging Mimosa. 

Is that so? Mimosa challenged back.

"I see that Mimosa has started making its move!" commentated the announcer.

Mimosa opted for its aggressive tactics. It sprinted to Dominique's side and began barraging the angel with a series of strong punches and rapid kicks. Mimosa's kicks and punches could not land a single hit on the floating angel. The fighter recoiled back and gave way for a clean roundhouse that missed the target by a hair.

Dominique was not quick in motion but it was quick to read its opponents moves. A little smile was beginning to appear on the corner of her mouth. 

*****

Oujirou's eyes fell on the clock that ticked off the minutes of the battle. It had already been running under two minutes. So far, neither angel's life points decreased a bit.

"Mimosa's offense techniques are solid, but it won't work on an angel such as Dominique. Dominique's foresight doesn't allow Mimosa's to connect," observed Saya insightfully.

Oujirou was not surprised to hear this from his daughter. "What you say may hold true at this moment. In most cases, Mimosa's offense oftentimes surmounts Dominique's defenses. Chihiro's weakness lies in his strong point."

Saya smiled knowingly. " Really, you don't have to put it that way."

Oujirou smiled back. "In any case, we'll just have to watch closely."

From behind, Ichirou let loose an exaggerated sigh and said, "You father and daughter tandem...." keeping the comment more to himself rather than Saya and Oujirou.

In her mind, Saya was very curious about one thing. She posed a question with uncertainty. "Uncle Ichirou, I just wanna ask this," Saya began, looking at her uncle. "What happens if the jankenpon loser doesn't keep his end of the bargain?"

Ichirou chose to return the answer with, "what happens? Who knows?" and a wild grin that showed his teeth.

Oogata saw how silly the chief looked. _He looks like a monkey, but I better not say it, _he thought while snickering. 

The creator of the layer stared daggers at his assistant. "OOGATA!" howled Ichirou.

"H-hai," stammered the man, feeling nervous.

"BATSU GAME!"

*****

Chihiro knew what was going to happen next. Yes, he could see it very clearly. Sooner or later, it was going to happen...

Mimosa stood hands-side down and twisted the upper half of her body in a 360 degrees turn which intended to knock down its opponent. Dominique avoided it easily enough and moved further away. 

Catching up to the hovering angel, Mimosa did a series of handsprings. The meta-angel thrust its legs wildly. Its efforts were in vain.

The commentator was, without a doubt, trying his best to deliver to the spectators what was going on. He did so with gusto. " Ara, Mimosa's face is taking on an expression of frustration. It's making a desperate and pathetic punch at nothing but air. 'How come I can't hit it?!' Mimosa seems to be crying out as it is thrashing out blindly. Folks, it's Berserker Mimosa we're witnessing here. Mimosa only comes to be like this in matches with the Phantasm." 

"Hinako-san, Mimosa's gone into berserk mode again..." Chihiro told Hinako.

"I know," Hinako said in a neutral tone. 

"I do not understand how you can always be so complacent when your angel is out-of-control."

Hinako smiled. "I have to, otherwise I will not be able to beat you. Besides, I believe Mimosa."

Chihiro was dumbfounded. "S-sugoi, Hinako-san. You are really calm about this."

"Of course!" chirped Hinako. Hinako glimpsed the timer. _Only half a minute left, _she thought. _Time for miracles. _

_[29, 27, 25, 23]_

Bombarding the floating angel with maneuvers, Mimosa was slowly gaining in on Dominique. It had no choice but to keep on backing away.

_[21, 19, 17, 15]_

Dominique was trapped in one corner with nowhere else to go. Mimosa drew near the meta-angel deliberately, preparing to make its final move.

_[13, 12, 11, 10]_

Dominique aimed its projectile ribbons. Mimosa dodged them. It jumped in the air...

_[9, 8, 7, 6]_

....executed a somersault...

_[5, 4, 3, 2]_

_...._and struck down Dominique...

_...1_

Dominique fell limply out of the layer, landing at the foot of Chihiro.

"Un-be-lieva-ble!!" bursted out Mr. Announcer. "It was only in the last moment that Hinako-chan's meta-angel was able to make a direct hit on Chihiro-kun's. This is amazing for Chihiro-kun! I don't think he intended to lose. But rules are rules in the regulatory match. Hinako and Mimosa wins!"

The crowd cheered without restraint. Chihiro and Hinako fans usually supported both deuses. Whoever won from the two was fine with them. Yet, when the fight yielded a draw, the egging on was much more louder.

" All those who betted on Mimosa will get a free Angelic Layer poster of the said meta-angel! You can redeem it at Piffle Princess within a period of 3 days!" thundered the announcer.

"Chihiro-kun, Dominique has changed a lot. " Hinako told Chihiro.

Chihiro reddened a bit. "No, she didn't. It was your meta-angel that changed."

"Thank you for making this match exciting!" 

"Y-you too."

*****

People were regarding the match inside the video room. 

"Only one bar has been taken away by Mimosa and at the very last second," Oujirou said.

"Obviously, Minamoto Chihiro has been progressing. It looks like Dominique's endurance to Mimosa's attacks has improved greatly," added Oujirou in a pensive manner.

"Also, Hinako-chan didn't do anything when her meta-angel turned berserk." 

Oujirou smiled mysteriously. "Our prodigies are trying out something new, I guess."

Ichirou squinched his eyes at his younger brother. After a while, he took off his glasses and began to wipe them vigorously on his dirty lab coat.

Meanwhile, Saya was losing interest. She was about to walk off when her father noticed her. "Saya-chan, going somewhere?" he queried.

"Out for some fresh air," Saya replied. "All this ululation is becoming unbearable. There's too much hype. I'll walk home, is that alright?"

Oujirou nodded his assent. 

"Oh!" Ichirou suddenly exclaimed, remembering something and slamming his fist on his palm. He strode to Oujirou's side and fixed on him a grave look. "Oujirou, this Saturday's that day," he said.

Oujirou stiffened. "Yes."

"My grandmother's death anniversary," Saya volunteered, her back turned.

Ichirou gazed at the back of his niece. "Saya-chan....."

"I'll remind grandaunt just in case she forgot," Saya intoned in an unwavering voice before leaving the room. 

"AHH!" yelped someone. It was Oogata, who had gone neglected until now. He had suffered a lot from his punishment a few minutes ago. It was actually a feat that he survived all the batsu games from the older days up 'til now.

Ichirou was disconcerted. He examined his assistant. "What is it?" he asked. 

"Chief, I forgot to collect data!" Oogata seemed to be on the verge of bawling. For a grown man, he looked pitiful at the time.

There was a strange glint in Ichirou's eyes, a smirk was plastered on his face. A low sinister laugh creeped up from him. "There's only one way to amend for that. This calls for a" - Oogata began to sweat profusely and gulped a big lump of saliva - "BATSU GAME!"

"I knew it!" groaned Oogata, "not again!!" 

Oujirou chuckled, despite the serious airs earlier on. Times had been harsh lately and what better way to tackle them with a little humor.

Oto be continuedO

How was the fighting sequence? I can't describe things well when it comes to that. But I hope you were able to imagine what was going on. I know that the way the match was carried on was different. I did not write it so that the commentator would introduce the deuses before they took their seats. But hey, this is a different type of match, right? So, conventional procedures are not applied. Next time, I'll try to keep things more vivid.

Keep an eye out for Hatoko in the next chapter! Til next time!


	3. Encounters

Even if I don't get a lot of reviews for this (kinda disheartening, really), I've resolved to continue on with the second generation fic. Thanks for the constructive criticism. It helped me a lot. Okay. Here is chapter three. Here, more things will be cleared up. I understand that some of you reviewers think I should deviate from the character's predecessor's personalities and that the plotline should be as original as possible. Well, I'll try my best to keep it my own style. 

Notice for Upcoming Characters~

Takamine Iris - ???

Kobayashi Hatoko

??? - means you'll find out about them in this chapter.

Information Nook~

* Takamine Iris (15 years old)

Her real name is Eris but she prefers Iris. She is very vain and has an egoistic side to her. The sweet side that she shows to the public is just ruse. The spotlights have shone on Iris ever since she started quite early on her acting career. Iris' best TV program to date is "Cat's Paw".

Recently, Iris has been having dilemmas. The ratings of her program are going down because of the ongoing AL Season, a reason for the young actress to dislike AL. The other problem is about the pressing matter of inadequate study hours. Her manager insists that she attend to her academic life.

Odd tidbit: She stopped going to school for a year and when she did, she was sent back to 2nd year in middle school.

*TEEN SERIES - "CAT'S PAW"  
The teen actress, Takamine Iris, stars in this series wherein her character, Catherine Sommers, is a witch who can transform into a cream-colored cat. The title has a double meaning. Cat is the shortened name of the main character and at the same time points out the fact that she is also a cat.

* Irisnism - Iris' popularity reaches to the extent of inspiring her fans to imitate her mannerisms and get-ups.

**oCast Meeto**

**Chapter 3**

**Encounters**

If there was one fault to point out in Kobayashi Hatoko's work, that would be her absolute devotion to her job. True, any employer would be gratified in having such an employee. An overtime was nothing to the twenty-two year old former Deus. In fact, many of her colleagues, not to mention friends from college, thought that making her 'Employee/Student of the Year' was hardly an understatement.

Right now Hatoko was driving almost 60 kph, desperately hoping she would make it on time. Tamayo called her up earlier that day asking for a favor. Hatoko remembered her beginning with something like "Hatoko-chan, Hinako needs to be picked up in this school she's playing Angelic Layer at and I don't think I'll be able to come at the right time. Will you-"

"Say no more, Tamayo! I'll do it," Hatoko had immediately responded. As long as it had something to do with her dear niece, she would gladly take on anything. The twenty-two year old simply loved Hinako.

_Baka. You should have been mindful of the time. Hinako would think that you're such an unreliable aunt! _Hatoko's thoughts ran. She made a mental note to tone down on being a workaholic. 

Hatoko recalled her brother remarking she was like an unstoppable working machine, while her sister chided her and said she would get old pretty quick if she went at that rate.

And to their comments, the younger woman would say, "Hai, hai, Kotarou, Tamayo."

Hatoko never did call Kotarou nor Tamayo, oniisan or oneesan. Her brother still complained about that habit of hers.

Going towards an intersection, traffic slowed down because of the red light. This was utterly unfavorable to the blue-haired woman. She impatiently tapped her finger on the wheel. Now there was no assurance that she would reach her destination on time.

Hatoko spent comfortless minutes pondering over random things such as: what to spend her next salary on, deciding on what presents to buy for Christmas Day since it was getting near, resolving to clear the growing trash in her apartment, paying the monthly dues to her tenant, remembering her commitments...

"Ugh," Hatoko grunted. She clenched her fists but checked herself as the traffic light signalled 'go' again. This time, she made sure that no red light would beat her. Hatoko drove like a madman. In case there ever was another person inside the car strapped up tight, he would be very frightened and panicky. If that person was Kotarou, he would ground an adult such as Hatoko. Oniichan was not a meddler, really. He was just concerned.

Hatoko imagined Kotarou that way. She made a grimace. Lucky for her she arrived at Megumare Gakkoo without getting a speeding ticket from an officer on duty. 

The parking lot was mostly empty except for a few other vehicles. Hatoko parked beside a van. Alighting from the car, the former Deus rushed over to the entrance of the dome. Surely, she was panting very hard as she caught sight of an anchor woman she knew very well.

Hatoko stopped short to catch her breath. "Shouko..." she called out faintly to the anchor woman.

Asami Shouko, renowned newscaster, spun around. She greeted Hatoko warmly upon realizing who she was. "Hisashiburi. Here to watch your kawaii niece?"

"I could have, if I got here earlier. How did it go?"

"As usual, in a regulatory match between Chihiro-kun and Hina-chan - Hina-chan wins."

Hatoko slapped a hand to her forehead. "That hapless boy never did have good sense in jankenpon."

Shouko laughed. "Speaking of the hapless boy, here he comes with your niece."

Chihiro and Hinako, cradling their meta-angels, came on cue. Hinako brightened up when she saw her aunt. "Hatoko-obasan!" she cried out, running over to Hatoko. Chihiro was two steps behind.

"Konnichiwa, Hina-chan!" said Hatoko fondly, "your mom couldn't come so I'm here to pick you up instead."

"Is that so?"

She knew Hinako was just as affectionate of her as she was. It was Hatoko after all who taught Hinako about Angelic Layer. Teaching Hinako how to control her meta-angel, it brought them close to each other. Hatoko saw herself in the child's personality. The candor by which her niece had, reminded her of her own intense feelings for Angelic Layer. 

Hatoko praised Hinako's mostly saffron-toned attire. "Oh, my niece is wearing such a cute outfit!"

Hinako peered up at the amethyst-haired woman with eagerness. "Hontoo? Ou-san said the same thing!"

"Of course! Right, Chihiro-kun?" Hatoko glanced meaningfully at Chihiro. She was aware of the eleven year old's crush on the ten year old.

Coloring a deep shade of red, Chihiro tensed up. "H-hai," he managed to utter.

Hatoko laughed. It was fun to tease kids, especially ones like Chihiro. The poor boy just did not know how to react in front of Hinako. Almost everyone who was involved in Angelic Layer - may they be onlookers, AL company staffs, deuses - could see through Chihiro. Hinako seemed to be the only one ignorant of what was happening around her. Or maybe not. Hatoko could not tell. 

"Hatoko-obasan? Daijobu?" Hinako's voice suddenly popped into Hatoko's head, disrupting her train of thoughts.

Hatoko shook herself awake. "Yes," she murmured, looking distantly. Her azure eyes fell on a girl of about twelve, with amber tresses and jade irises. She was walking in their direction. There was something that made Hatoko bring her attention to the girl. It came to her that this child resembled someone she knew. 

"You're...." Hatoko said, unable to finish.

Passing by Hatoko, the girl gazed at the former deus for a moment then turned her attention to the other persons. Everyone else looked at her too.

"Saya-oneesan," Hinako addressed her, " are you leaving now?"

"Ah," Saya answered somewhat tersely, bowing to the group. Saya approached Shouko. "Aunt Shouko, this Saturday - I am sure you know what important event there is on that day..."

"I get it," Shouko said, "arigatou, Saya-chan, for reminding me. Ran and I will meet you at your house on Saturday. Call Ran to let us know what time we'll be heading there so the two of us can come early."

"Wakkata." Saya bowed once more. Unexpectedly, she smiled a whimsical smile and told the two young deuses in front of her, " my uncle made a weird type of match but Minamoto-san and Kobayashi-san still did it."

Chihiro and Hinako were flustered at this statement. 

"Goodbye, then." Saya continued on her way. 

It was well after Saya was gone that Hatoko revealed her thoughts to the only other adult there. "Is she..."

Shouko nodded. "Mihara Saya, Oujirou's daughter."

"She's rather formal in manner," noted Hatoko.

"Saya takes after her father's quirks."

"Does she have an angel?"

"Nope. She does not do Angelic Layer. That's kind of odd, considering her family's background."

Hatoko fell silent. She was lost in thought about Mihara Saya. _Misaki, your daughter is just like you....except that she got a bit of Oujirou's character. Yet, that smile was very much like Misaki. What's astounding is that this girl hasn't tried Angelic Layer at all._

Hinako pulled lightly on Hatoko's skirt. "Hatoko-obasan, what did Saya-oneesan mean?"

"That's Saya's indirect way of saying both of you did great," Shouko explained, smiling.

"Ack! I left my things inside my classroom. I have to get them!" Chihiro said, paying his respects to the three females first before dashing off abruptly. 

"Wait, let me come with you!" Hinako hollered, stopping Chihiro. 

Chihiro took on an expression of great surprise. "Eh?! Why do you want to come?"

"I want to see Chihiro-kun's school even if it's only for a short time!"

"Are you sure?" Chihiro was against going together with Hinako. He was not really sure if he could act like normal.

"Hai!" Hinako insisted. "We're coming, aren't we Mimosa?" The girl patted the angel who was sitting on her shoulder. It turned the corner of its lips up in a smile. 

"What about your aunt?" Chihiro threw a desperate look at Hatoko.

Hatoko smiled generously. "Just don't take too long."

_No! No! No!_ Chihiro's inner self struggled violently. He was going to falter after having seen, "I'll leave my niece in your hands," written all over Kobayashi Hatoko.

"Sa, iki-masu!" Hinako chirped energetically.

_*****_

Relief washed over the olive-haired deus when he saw that his classroom was empty. Chihiro wanted to avoid coming across fellow students at all costs. If he did come face-to-face with a few, he was prepared to bolt away as fast as he could - with Hinako in tow, of course. On second thought, that would not have been proper. Whatever was to come, he resolved that he would have to deal calmly with it.

_Funny how I just said to myself that I would be calm as possible._

An obstruction stood there right in front of him. Simply put, Chihiro was wrong to even dream that no one would catch him with the Elan of the Layer. Eating one's words can taste really bad. Chihiro was not handling things well.

"Heh! It's Chihiro-kun and Hinako-chan!"

"See, I told you that they'd look good together!"

"What a lovely pair they'd make, don't you agree?"

"Aww, he's so cute when he blushes!" 

"Hinako-chan's actually more kawaii up close!"

"Dominique looked suteki as always and Mimosa was her spunky self too!"

The onslaught was lurking just where Chihiro was not counting on it. A mob of students met the two in the corridor - all of them begging for autographs. Hinako faced the crowd with a cheerful disposition, while Chihiro did not. Public relations was a big issue for him. He never could act natural in front of so many people. The young deus stuttered and blushed effusively vis-à-vis the gathered mass. Nevertheless, Chihiro did sign a few autographs. A fangirl asked him to sign his name on a poster of Mimosa, which was definitely puzzling since Mimosa was Hinako's meta-angel.

Some fanatics requested Chihiro and Hinako to let the celebrities touch their meta-angels. At the two's approval, these fanatic were very ecstatic; Chihiro laughed uneasily; Hinako just smiled accomodatingly. 

It took a while to satisfy the appetites of the Megumare students. 

"We don't want to spoil your date, bye now! Thanks for the autograph! Chihinako's the best!" they would all tell the two.

A classmate of Chihiro's winked at him and gave him a thumbs up. "Nice going, Minamoto-san! I knew you would have the guts to ask Hinako-chan out on a date!" said this boy as he bade goodbye.

Chihiro felt the blood rise in his cheeks. "Ch-chigau yo..." 

"Nani? Is there something wrong, Chihiro-kun?" Hinako had been scrutinizing Chihiro's face from the time the crowd had thinned out. The girl noticed that he was beet red; the boy had been murmuring incoherent words. 

Chihiro snapped back to reality. He found the two of them alone in the corridor. "It's nothing. Hinako-san, we better head back to you aunt."

"Oh yeah."

The two walked back, with Chihiro lagging behind. The reason was that Chihiro was seriously racking his brain for a topic of conversation.

"There were a few teachers amongst those group of students, weren't there?" Hinako told Chihiro out of the blue.

"Huh? Uh-huh. The teacher's in this school are very supportive of anyone who plays AL. In fact, one of the senseis you saw earlier was my homeroom teacher. He approves of AL so much that he's willing to dedicate homeroom classes to talking about it."

Hinako giggled in a high-pitch. "And I thought my teachers were strange. Sugoi, Chihiro-kun. You deal with these kind of senseis."

"Iie. I think you're the one who's sugoi. You didn't freak out in front of that crowd. Also, even when your angel was Beserker Mimosa during the jankepon game, you were actually smiling."

"That's because okaasan said that I just have to be myself all the time, no matter what. It wouldn't be good if I trembled like a coward. It's the same with Mimosa" - Hinako tenderly hugged the meta-angel to her chest - "if I don't trust her with my heart, how can I be a deus worthy of her?"

Chihiro considered Hinako's words with the utmost reverence. He glanced at the little figure of a doll alight on his shoulder.

"Besides, I know that Chihiro-kun would never violate a jankenpon game," added Hinako as an afterthought.

"Hinako-san!"

***** 

That afternoon, the sun's face was much less hotter, inducing many people to have just the right mood for walking on foot. The buzz of people was gradually dwindling. The traffic of cars was lighter compared to earlier in the day. It was in the morning when everyone, to be able to reach their designations on time, rode almost any kind of transportation. But it was in the afternoon that most people felt like strolling. Home sweet home could wait. It wasn't going anywhere.

That was just what Saya felt. This was what she wanted, minding her own business. The way to her house was usually an urbanized path. This time, Saya strayed away from the direct route to her house, taking the more scenic one. The girl ambled along a path with rows of tall trees. As she reach the part that would lead her to the nearest park, she noticed a crowd of people gathering. Curiously, Saya made her way to the spot. She could not see what the fuss was about but she could hear several girls screaming their heads off in an ear-shattering high pitch and hopping mad on their feet like bunnies.

Glancing around her, Saya searched the mass of people for someone she could speak to. She chose a male who was, at the least, sanely standing at a distance from the group of lunatic girls. He was a paunch thirty-something guy who had a face that seemed to have been unshaven for months. Saya realized that she could have found someone else more sensible-looking, but he would have to do. "Excuse me, mister. I just want to know what's going on," she said in a loud enough voice for the man to hear.

The paunch man faced her. "There's going to be a shooting out here for that TV series, "Cat's Paw". Everyone's waiting for the star of "Cat's Paw", Takamine Iris-chan!"

"Iris-chan....." The paunch man sighed and went into a dreamy state.

Saya moved as far away as she could from the person she thought was sensible but was actually just like the screaming and jumping schoolgirls. Right now, the schoolgirls were even more hyped than before. Two minivans followed by a black car had just stopped outside the vicinity of the park. A man in a coat got out from the front and opened the door to the back seat. A teenager emerged.

"Iris-chan!!!" clamored the crowd of people. They were, apparently, fans of the girl who appeared in front of them. The fanpeople immediately surrounded her, yet not as fast as the young star's bodyguards. The possés hindered anyone from getting a step closer to Iris. 

Wanting to take a closer look, Saya stood on the tip of her toes and craned her neck above the heads of the gathered people. She saw, for herself, this Iris person. She was a dainty girl, characteristically adorned with glamour itself. Golden ringlets that reached up to her waists framed her angelic face. The actress wore sunglasses. When she removed them, twinkling magenta eyes revealed themselves. Rosy cheeks and cherry-red lips completed this wonderful product of beauty.

"So, she's that famous teen star, Iris. No wonder Ran adores her. Ran looks up to these types," Saya said to herself. 

"Hiya, everyone!" Iris chirped in a melodious voice, accompanying the words with a ravishing smile that raised even more of a fuss. Everyone must have felt like they were in cloud nine, all but Saya. 

Another black car that had unmercifully been noticed halted to a stop behind the already growing line of vehicles. In it stepped out two more teenagers. Saya suspected, from the increasing hubbub, that these two were Iris' co-stars. These two co-stars were obviously popular but not as popular as the actress who portrayed Catherine Sommers.

The exaggerated scene disgusted Saya. It was a mistake that she ever wanted to stroll around the park, she realized. And so turning about-face, she marched home, feeling her desire for sight-seeing being sapped away.

to be continued


	4. Coming Home

Whew. It's been like three years since I last touched this. I was starting to lose my interest in continuing this. I don't think I have enough courage to. But, still...I told myself not to give up. Hopefully, someone reads this. This chapter is a sort of side story. I call it a side story cause it doesn't actually focus on Saya and the rest of the chapter focus on another character, unlike the first three chapters.

**Cast Meet**

**Chapter 4**

**Coming Home**

Saya turned the key in the lock, twisted the doorknob, and entered the house.

"I'm home," Saya murmured. Although she knew that no one was at home, she grew accustomed to saying those words. It just made her feel she was truly at home. And somehow, the house became warmer. It was only her way thinking.

Without taking as much as a glance at her environment, she crossed the foyer and headed straight for her bedroom. It was her habit that the first thing she would do when she arrived home was to go to her room to change out of her school uniform, replenish herself with an afternoon snack, and rest for an hour. Sometimes, she slept in the afternoon. Sometimes, she would only lie down in bed staring at the ceiling. And when she had enough, she would take out her homework, working on it for at least two hours. By six o' clock, she would start preparing dinner. When the food had already been cooked and the table was set, Saya would take a bath. Then, she would sit at the table and wait for her father to come home. They would eat dinner together or if he wasn't home by around 8 p.m., Saya would eat ahead. After cleaning up and leaving food on the table for his father (if he still hadn't come home), she would dawdle around doing anything she felt like. Such was her life. Saya spent most of her time alone, but she was used to it.

Saya set down the keys and her bag on her desk. She undressed, changing into a loose shirt and baggy shorts. She picked up her clothes in a bundle and dumped them in the hamper inside the bathroom.

The twelve-year old paused outside the bathroom, brows furrowed. Saya made her way to the living room, coming to a halt in front of the telephone stand. The young girl lifted off the receiver from its cradle and dialed a number.

Saya pressed the receiver close to her ear. _Kriiinnng..._

_...Kriiinnng...__Kriiinnng..._

_...Kriiinnng...__Kriiinnng..._

_...Kriiinnnng..._

After the sixth ring, Saya replaced the receiver.

"Of course, she must still be in school," Saya said to herself. She would have to call later and made a mental note to _remember _ it.

* * *

Takamine Iris, famous teen icon and star of the TV series - "Cat's Paw", was currently wearing a very ugly expression as she sat inside her hotel room. For one thing, she was feeling really resentful towards her manager, who insisted that they shoot a few scenes in that vicinity. _That _ vicinity, which happened to be the same place that the Angelic Layer International Tournament was being held at. Stupid manager. Stupid Angelic Layer.

Of course, Iris did not openly told people that it was what she thought. Her manager only knew that she somehow refused to affiliate herself with the enterprising sport. Piffle Princess had repeatedly offered the popular teen actress to endorse some of their latest products. Iris' manager was all too ready to accept the offer if it were not for Iris' adamant refusals. No deal. No contract.

Iris' manager could not understand why she seemed to hold such a strong grudge against anything Angelic Layer. Well, blame it on Angelic Layer, for ever being invented. Her TV series, "Cat's Paw", had been doing well on air. Lately, though, the ratings were drastically fluctuating for ten consecutive weeks. The reason was because of a string of AL tourneys being telecasted at the same time as Cat's Paw. And from the looks of it, the AL season would be staying for quite a while.

The AL hype overshadowed her own popularity. Iris felt that she was all too quickly losing her fans. There just wasn't enough fans fawning over her. They were either too busy playing with dolls in the AL domes or too busy to unglue their eyes from the TV screen, watching angel fights instead of pretty magical girls who can turn into adorable cream-colored cats.

Three days earlier, when the crew came to shoot a scene at the park, Iris was met with hyper fan girls and enamored fan boys. Her inner self was in an extremely ecstatic state. The sound of her screaming fans, all clamoring for her, was music to her ears. These people who worshipped the ground she walked on, they were her source of sheer euphoria. Without them, she felt nothing.

But curse whoever created Angelic Layer. When word got around that some prodigal deuses had a regulated battle between themselves at a nearby elementary school, her so-called shippers flocked away to see these prodigal deuses or whatever they're called. Only a few staunch loyalists remained, but not enough to get her into the mood to act.

So what did she do? She threw a fit, yelling at her manager that she was not ever budging a foot until the AL season was over and that she would only venture out of her trailer if AL died she did not care in how many years. She stomped off towards the hotel and locked herself inside her suite, sulking. She would live in there if she had to.

Her manager had been pounding on the door, for some time now, and to no end was he relenting. It annoyed Iris.

"Iris! Iris! Enough of this nonsense! Will you please get out of there? Why are you acting so immature!"

"Go away!" shouted Iris. She cupped her ears, trying to block out the noise. _No matter what you say or do, I am not leaving this place!_

"Iris! If you don't open this door right this instant--"

Iris' manager stopped short. Iris could hear him saying something in a muffled voice to someone else outside the room. A while more and Iris heard the lock turn. The door opened; a tawny -haired boy stepped inside, looking very cheerful.

"Hello, dear sister."

"Haru," Iris said flatly. She squinted her eyes at the boy. "What are_ you_ doing here and how did you get in?"

"Why, through the door, of course," answered Haru, appearing mildly surprised.

"Answer me!" Iris' face contorted into one of anger and rage.

"I used a key. How else could I get in if the door was locked? I'm not Houdini."

"Haru. You are testing my patience."

Haru smiled, unfazed. "There, there. No need to be cross. I heard you were shooting at the park, but by the time I came, you were already gone. Your co-stars informed me that you went ahead to the hotel you were staying at."

"Hmph!"

Takamine Haru was Iris' shrewd, thirteen-year old brother. Unlike his sister, Haru was not into show business. Instead, he wass involved with AL. He does not play the sport, but rather developed angels for the company. A genius in his own right, Haru is the youngest staff member and worked in R & D. The angels he design usually become the most in-demand. Suffice to say, a lot of people start playing AL because of him.

Many say that Iris and Haru were too opposite and dissimilar to be brother and sister. He was reserved, with a very calm and composed demeanor. He did not easily let on what he was thinking about. He was so sharp, that it oftentimes got on Iris' nerves a lot. That was probably why the two of them were not close, even when Iris still lived with him and their parents.

Iris recalled. This was one more reason why she hated her manager utterly right now. _This_ area was where she originally lived. Iris left her home two years ago. Two years ago was when she began her acting career. Two years ago was when she said that to her parents that she was moving out, to be independent. She refused to be funded by her parents. She bought her own place to stay with the money she earned from acting.

"Oneesan, aren't you going to visit mom and dad?"

The two siblings stared at each other as the question hung in the air.

Iris closed her eyes. "Haru, you know there's no way I'm going back to our house, not even for a visit."

"Aww. That's too bad. I already told mom and dad that I'm bringing you home tonight."

Iris' eyes snapped open, face livid. "What do you mean by that!"

"I just thought that you need a break from your strenuous schedule, right Aikawa-san?" Haru cocked his head towards the doorway, where Iris' manager, Aikawa Senta, was peeking out from.

"As I was saying, wouldn't it be great if Iris took a vacation from her acting career?" Haru told Aikawa.

"Y-yes, you're r-right!" Aikawa stuttured.

Iris glared smolderingly at Haru, who only smiled. When she turned towards her manager, he seemed close to fainting. Aikawa's appearance that moment was a far cry from the person who had been pounding on her door a while back.

The teen idol spoke in a hectoring tone. "I haven't agreed to a vacation. Aikawa-san, explain."

"I k-know. I also k-know h-how important your c-career is t-to y-you. B-but, s-since i-it's the AL s-season right n-now..." he trailed off.

Iris pondered those few words, which already meant a lot. Her manager knew how peevish she had been lately because of AL. Iris' competitor for attention was a tough one. She ** disliked** sharing the limelight. AL was stealing away her fandom and she refused to accept it. It _would_ be a good idea to get out of the picture for a while, Iris thought. It's not like she was quitting being an actress.

"Okay..." Iris finally yielded. _But, what about--_

"Don't worry, sis. The TV network can show re-runs of 'Cat's Paw'. Even though, they're re-runs, I'm sure your fans won't complain," Haru said, answering Iris' unvoiced question.

Iris peered at Haru. He was still so perceptive that it unsettled her. It was as if he could read minds, her mind especially. They were definitely not brother and sister. And both of them knew it was true. They were brother and sister only by law.

* * *

"WHAT!"

Iris sprung up from her chair. Oh, Haru was so going to get it. This was not part of the plan. He had tricked her, that conniving...

"Why do I have to attend school while I'm staying here!"

"Eris, you don't have to be violent. Please, sit down."

"Iris."

"Excuse me?"

"Call me Iris."

"It's her screen name."

"Well, this family will not be treating her like those fans of hers treat her. You will be Eris while you are in this house."

"..."

"Iris."

"Fine! Iris it is. Iris, you have stopped going to school since two years ago. I think it is time you start paying more attention to your education."

"Why do I have to? I said I was only spending some time off from work. I didn't say I was going to use that time to study."

"What you call 'work' won't be enough to ensure you a good future. Fame and fortune won't last forever. I'm sure you've realized that, at some point."

"..."

Iris sighed. This was the worst day of her fourteen years of living.

* * *

Saya had already prepared tonight's dinner. She had also taken her bath. Now, she was in the kitchen, waiting for her dad. Saya turned her head towards the clock sitting on the counter. 7:45 p.m., the hour and minute hand told her.

Saya suddenly remembered something, getting up from the table. She entered the living room area and went towards the telephone stand. Picking up the receiver, she pressed the redial button on the phone.

_...Kriiinnng..._

_...Kriiinnng..._

_...Kriiinnng..._

"Hello, Asami residence!" a feminine voice chirped on the other line.

"Ran," Saya said.

"Sa-chan! Is that you?"

"Ah."

"What time is it? has your dad arrived home yet?"

"Not yet."

"Is there anything wrong? Did something happen?"

"Nothing happened. It's about Saturday..."

to be continued...

* * *

I don't think this has anything to do with Angelic Layer anymore. -.- This has got to be the shortest chapter I've ever written. I think I've only written this to let people know that I'm still alive. This fic is. Well, please review. I need inspiration right now to continue this. Tell me if I should continue this. It's really going to be interesting in the next few chapters if I do. Thank you. 


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